


A Recent Opponent Would Like to Be Your Friend

by Chash



Series: And So It Goes [2]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Social Media
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-16
Updated: 2017-01-16
Packaged: 2018-09-17 23:13:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9350453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chash/pseuds/Chash
Summary: Monty does not, as a rule, accept friend requests from people he beats at Hearthstone anymore. He's too smart for that. He knows they only end in abuse and stupidity.But this was a really fun game, so he figures maybe it'll turn out okay.Just this once.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I'm probably not done with this verse, and I assume a Bellamy POV of the main story is coming sooner rather than later, but I also really wanted to get in Monty and Miller's Hearthstone romance, so here we are.
> 
> Also there is a lot of Hearthstone jargon right at the very beginning because of who I am as a person but just power through and you'll be fine. Or don't, I'm not your dad.

In general, Monty does not trust friend requests sent by the last person he played in Hearthstone. He used to, back when he was young and naive and did not realize 95% of the people who sent friend requests after a game were doing it because the limited emote options available weren't sufficient for their trash-talking. Even with Blizzard's profanity filters, he got cursed out and abused a lot in those early days, and he likes to think he's learned his lesson. He doesn't need to make friends through Hearthstone; he has like three friends already. That's totally sufficient.

Still, his game with MillForDays is one of the better ones he's had in a while. He's been feeling kind of bored with the game recently, not as excited by the new cards from Karazhan as he hoped to be, and no release date yet for the new expansion. He felt as if he'd been playing nothing but Shaman and Zoo for days, and it was kind of exciting to play someone with a different Warlock build, finally. And, when his opponent played N'Zoth the Corrupter and filled his board with six Dreadsteeds, Monty was honestly so impressed that he took a screenshot to show Jasper later.

And then he beat the guy, because having six one-one horses that can't die only does so much good, but, as a final act of defiance, Monty had to admit it had _style_.

So when the _a recent opponent would like to be your friend!_ message pops up, Monty actually considers it. It was a fun, close game, and he feels as if he won through skill, rather than luck. There's a possibility that user MillForDays doesn't feel the same way, and is going to call him a gay cuck, but it's not like Monty's never gotten flamed before. He can handle it.

Apparently he still believes in the inherent goodness of people, because he clicks accept.

And then he immediately starts a new game, so he won't dwell on it too much.

 **MillForDays** : you gotta admit, if I wasn't dead on board you would have been f%@#ing terrified of my army of undying horses

 **MontRushmore** : that was honestly the best thing I've ever seen  
I took a screenshot for my best friend  
I've never seen so many undying horses

 **MillForDays** : sometimes it works and it's awesome

 **MontRushmore** : tbh I think once you get six immortal horses out, you've already won in every way that matters  
I got the bonus star, but you destroyed me psychologically  
I'll probably never recover

 **MillForDays** : years later you're going to be at your therapist talking and be like  
yeah I think it all started in 2016  
and they'll be like, yeah, that year was a shitshow  
and you'll have to admit it was just six dreadsteeds

 **MontRushmore** : probably the therapist doesn't even know anything about hearthstone  
so then I have to give them a complete background of the game and that just makes it worse

 **MillForDays** : that's exactly what I'm going for with this deck, yeah

 **MontRushmore** : tbh I'm just glad you're not playing shaman

 **MillForDays** : right????

They complain about their least favorite decks for a bit, and then the guy--Monty assumes, just based on Hearthstone demographics--says he has to go and signs off. 

He figures that will be the end of their interactions, unless he has the play a friend quest and no one else is around, but two days later MillForDays messages him to complain about how badly some random effects worked out for him, and it just so happens that Monty also has some complaints about his arena deck, and suddenly it's just a thing. It's not as if he doesn't have other online friends--anyone as nerdy as him has at least a few completely virtual relationships--but MillForDays feels different. Possibly because he knows literally nothing about the guy, or even whether or not he _is_ a guy, or possibly just because it still feels like he's waiting for the other shoe to drop. No recent Hearthstone opponent friending can possibly go this well.

He gets the spectate a friend quest two weeks after he starts talking to MillForDays and asks if he can watch him, and they have a decent discussion about deck choices and changes he could make.

Monty finds himself asking for a copy of the decklist, which means exchanging emails, so he finds out that MillForDays email is n8thegr9@gmail.com and his name is Nate Miller, and they add each other on hangouts too, for good measure. Which is also weird, but the Blizzard chat client sucks, and Jasper plays even less Hearthstone than Monty does these days, so it's nice to have _someone_ to complain to about what's happening in his games.

He doesn't realize just how much he's been communicating with MillForDays--with _Nate_ \--until he tells Clarke, "Sorry, let me just tell Nate where I'm going."

"Ooh, Nate?" she asks. "Who's Nate? New guy?"

"No, not a new guy. I mean, yes, he's a new guy, but he's not a _new guy_."

"Wow, yeah. That cleared everything up. I get it now."

Monty sends his _dinner w friend, back later_ message to Nate and closes his laptop. "Shut up. He's this guy from Hearthstone. We've been chatting about that."

"That's the online card game, right?" she asks. "How do you meet people doing that?"

"It's pretty difficult," he admits. "They have chat disabled by default so you can't, like, call a thirteen-year-old a cocksucker when they beat you."

"But how else are they going to know they suck cocks?" 

"I know you're making a joke, but there's actually a very complicated Hearthstone taunt metagame," he says.

"I only understood like half those words, and I don't care about the other half. Just tell me about the guy."

"So, after you play someone, you have the option to add them as a friend so you can chat with them, which I used to always accept, until I realized people mostly wanted to swear at me because they lost or make fun of me because they won."

"Yeah, that sounds like what I'd expect."

"But we had a really good game so I accepted his request, and he was cool, so we just started talking, I guess? I don't know. Jasper barely plays anymore, so he's my new Hearthstone buddy."

"Hey, I've heard of worse ways to meet people. At least you know you guys share an interest."

Clarke isn't quite the _last_ person Monty would go to for romantic advice, not when Jasper exists, but she's never showed much interest in dating, and shut Niylah down with the polite firmness of someone who's much better at avoiding romance than finding it.

But he appreciates her concern. And he'd be lying if he said he hadn't been wondering about Nate, a little bit. He sort of wonders about _everyone_ , when he first meets them, or at least everyone he gets along with. Clarke gave off _not interested_ vibes that were detectable from space, so never even considered her, and Niylah wasn't interested in guys. Most of the people in his classes are married or not his type, and he's been having no luck with online dating at all.

Nate is cool, and he's easy to talk to. Monty didn't even quite realize that they'd been talking every day, but they _have_ , easily, casually. He still doesn't know much about Nate's life, but he has a few details, mostly gathered through stray comments. He's online throughout most of the day, does some kind of programming stuff for work, and spends a lot of time thinking about murdering one of his housemates. 

It's not much, but--it could be something.

And then, in the middle of October, he gets the message that changes everything.

 **Nate** : jfc  
fuck the metro

 **Me** : obviously  
always  
which metro?  
I just assume they're all terrible

 **Nate** : DC  
the blue line was a mess today

It _shouldn't_ change everything, and Monty doesn't want to think it might. He and Nate haven't talked about all kinds of IRL things yet, and sexuality is one of them. It's amazing enough he managed to meet someone from his area; he can't possibly have met a queer guy who might be interested in him.

But still, his heart speeds up.

 **Me** : wait really?  
that's my line too  
should I go to class early??  
I'm not even dressed yet

 **Nate** : oh uh  
welp  
maybe?  
idk if it's still bad  
seriously?

 **Me** : yeah  
getting my phd in computer engineering at gwu

 **Nate** : oh wow  
yeah that's right down the street basically  
I'm in Alexandria but I work in DC

 **Me** : huh  
well  
hey, neighbor  
thanks for the warning about the blue line

 **Nate** : here to help  
got a meeting, ttyl  
don't be late to class

 **Me** : won't be  
have fun

Monty's met people from the internet before. He and Jasper go to Dragoncon most years, and they've met people from their WoW guilds, from gaming subreddits, from all kinds of random internet places. It's mostly fine, occasionally weird, and always more fun than anything else, but he's never met up with someone without a specific reason, an event.

"So find an event," says Clarke, like this is simple. "See if he wants to go to a movie or something."

"I don't even know if he's into guys."

"Oh, that's easy," says Niylah. "Just do a casual reference. If he asks you if you like something, lie and say your ex-boyfriend was a fan, and see how he reacts."

"Or mention one of your failed Okcupid things," Clarke adds. "Plus, he doesn't have to be queer to go to a movie with you. That definitely falls into safe, no-homo territory."

"I know," says Monty. "But I want to know, so I can manage my expectations accordingly."

"Do you want him to be queer?" asks Niylah. 

"I want everyone to be queer," Monty says. "In my ideal world everyone's just pan and I never have to worry about gender as a relationship factor."

"That does sound awesome," says Clarke. "But you're avoiding the question. Do you want this guy, specifically, to be into you?"

"I haven't even met him. But--I would like the possibility of that guy, specifically, being into me. That's not a crime, right?"

"No," says Clarke, smiling a little. "I hope he does. You should definitely drop some casual references to liking dudes. And then make sure to tell him you're bi, in case he's weird and biphobic."

"Do you have a mental to-do list for literally every situation?"

She shrugs, but her expression is slightly smug. "Always be prepared, right?"

"Yeah, definitely. Not freakish at all."

Clarke grins, and the conversation moves on to other things, but Monty keeps it on his backburner. He and Nate keep on chatting every day, talking about new games that they're playing, their daily schedules. They do some other online gaming, once Nate convinces him to buy Overwatch, and Monty resists the urge to ask if he wants to come over and check out some new board games. Not even for any good _reason_ ; it would be so easy to just ask if he wanted to hang out.

But he simultaneously doesn't want to get his hopes up and wants to keep his hopes alive for as long as possible. It's really not a good or sustainable position, but he hasn't had a good chance to casually reference his bisexuality, so he's sticking with it.

In the beginning of November, he starts flirting with a guy on Okcupid, and then he goes out with the guy and it's a total disaster. And Nate's the first person he wants to tell about it, even before Jasper, and that definitely means something.

 **Me** : I went on a date and it sucked

 **Nate** : sorry  
what happened?

 **Me** : So maybe this is just me  
But I'm not actually good at online dating?  
The whole culture is really confusing to me  
I'm so bad at just meeting someone online and assessing if I'm into them on dating websites  
It's like there's a problem with how my brain is wired  
This guy seemed totally fine  
But I couldn't get invested until I met him  
And he was all like  
Let's make out!  
And I was like, it's been ten minutes dude  
Related side note, I'm bisexual

 **Nate** : you gave me like five things to reply to there  
what are you using for online dating?

 **Me** : Okcupid  
I should probably just delete it and move to a yurt somewhere

 **Nate** : maybe wait on the yurt  
but if its not working for you, yeah, delete  
I was on grindr for a while and my best friend was so paranoid I had to stop  
related side note, I'm gay

 **Me** : Why was your best friend paranoid about grindr?

 **Nate** : he's paranoid about everything  
but the newer the tech is the less he trusts it  
he was convinced I was gonna get my organs harvested  
and every time I made a joke like "yeah I wanna harvest some organs" he'd stop talking to me for half an hour  
so it was pretty great tbh  
but he'd text me every five minutes to make sure I didn't get killed which is apparently a turn-off for some guys  
because they either thought he was my jealous boyfriend  
or misinterpreted the name "Bellamy," thought he was my jealous girlfriend, and accused me of being closeted  
so yeah  
I get it  
fun times  
don't internet date

 **Me** : Wow, my best friend must not be protective enough  
People only think we're dating when they see us together

 **Nate** : yeah, tell him to up his game  
sorry your date didn't go well

 **Me** : Not a big deal  
It's not like I was that invested  
But it always kind of makes me feel like a failure

 **Nate** : yeah  
but you're probably fine  
online dating isn't for everyone

 **Me** : Thanks  
Sorry to dump on you  
My best friend is pining about his inability to ever get a date so he acts like every time I turn someone down I'm personally letting him down  
And my other best friend doesn't date so she's not really helpful

 **Nate** : so I'm your third choice?

 **Me** : I realize now how sad that is  
I regret everything  
Anyway I'll be home in like ten minutes if you want to play Overwatch or something

 **Nate** : yeah, definitely  
sounds great

It really should be absolutely amazing news. Nate is local, and gay, and, okay, Monty has no idea what he looks like, but looks aren't everything, right? He _likes_ Nate. He's cool and smart and easy to talk to, and they have a lot in common. He feels possible in a way Okcupid guys never have, which doesn't even make _sense_. He's supposed to be looking for a date on Okcupid; he's never been looking for a crush on Hearthstone.

"I think I'm going to ask him to go see _Moana_ ," he decides. "That's normal, right?"

"Nothing about this is normal," says Jasper.

"Are you sure you want to start with that?" Clarke adds. "It's kind of date-y."

"You were the one who told me asking him to a movie wasn't romantic!"

"It doesn't _have_ to be romantic," she says. "It depends on how you ask. If you're like, I want to see this movie and I don't have anyone to go with, that's casual. If you ask him if he wants to go to _Moana_ with you, that's a date."

The rest of them consider this, and Monty finally inclines his head. "You know, I think that's probably true."

Clarke raises her beer. "I've got your back. So, you know, if you want to ask him on a date, you should. But if you don't, think about your phrasing. Very important."

"I wouldn't mind if it was a date," he admits. "But I guess maybe we should meet first."

"He could be some giant fat old guy," Jasper says.

"Giant, fat, old guys need love too," Niylah pipes up.

"Monty doesn't have to be the one to give that love, though."

"Maybe this means his love is purer," Clarke says. "No lust or anything. He's into Nate without even knowing what he looks like. Super romantic."

"Or super stupid," Monty mutters. "You be the judge."

"You should just send him a picture of yourself," says Niylah. "Wearing a funny shirt or something. To show it off."

Clarke taps her jaw. "Yeah, it's probably worse if you meet him in person on what's supposed to be a date, and then you're not into him and change your mind. So you should figure out if you're attracted to him before that. And you can try to get a read on if he thinks you're cute."

"You know that you come up with all these schemes and I never follow through on any of them, right?" Monty asks. "I'll probably just ask him what he looks like."

"But you love schemes!" Jasper protests. "We could make it zanier. Do you want zanier?"

"You could send Jasper's picture instead of yours because you're embarrassed," Clarke says.

"I'd be more embarrassed if he thought I was Jasper," says Monty, and Jasper elbows him.

It doesn't feel like it should be such a hard thing, to just talk about it. Monty thinks a little curiosity about his new friend is normal. After all, they live in the same city, are roughly the same age, and have compatible sexual orientations. For all Monty knows, Nate is confused that Monty _hasn't_ brought up how they live near each other and could hang out.

But Nate knows all the same things Monty knows about their demographics, and he hasn't asked either, which means that if Monty wants to do it, he should.

He gets his courage up the Monday before Thanksgiving, for no particular reason except that he's tired of _not_ getting his courage up. Someone's got to make the first move, and Monty wants it to be him. He's so ready.

 **Me** : so here's the thing about online dating

 **Nate** : are you still doing that?

 **Me** : not really  
because I suck at it

 **Nate** : yeah I remember this conversation  
so what about it?

 **Me** : I think the real problem isn't online dating, it's dating sites  
something about them just doesn't work for me  
because the whole point is dating  
I can't get into dating when I know I'm trying to get into dating, you know?

 **Nate** : not really, but keep going  
I'll catch up

 **Me** : this is basically the least efficient way in the world to tell you that I think I'm into you  
but we haven't actually met so maybe we should do that  
and then reassess  
which sounds awful  
but our dynamic could be totally different in person  
or you're not into me  
I mean you could already not be into me  
you can start typing any time btw  
this is terrible  
I don't know how to stop

 **Nate** : what are you doing tonight?

 **Me** : nothing?

 **Nate** : want to get coffee?

 **Me** : yes  
yes I really do  
are you going to be carrying a single red rose?

 **Nate** : I'm going to be looking like this  


**Me** : oh  
shit  
wow  
you've looked like that the whole time?

 **Nate** : well, sometimes I'm wearing a different shirt  
but other than that  
your turn  
what I am looking for?

 **Me** : I hope this  


**Nate** : yup, that's what I'm looking for  
where and when?

They agree to meet in Alexandria, so that Nate can go home and _get pretty_ first, which is one of those things that Monty cannot imagine is necessary. Monty has functioning eyes and he saw the picture; Nate is definitely already pretty enough. There is no world where Nate isn't pretty enough. But it's kind of exciting that he wants some time to get ready.

Clarke offers to come with him, to make sure Nate is on the level, but Monty finds he's not really worried about that. He promises to text her and Jasper throughout the meeting, to report that he's not dead and has all of his original body parts, but he figures Nate will be texting his overprotective best friend too, so it won't be awkward.

Or, at least, that part won't be awkward. There'll be plenty of other awkwardness to go around. But there's a part of him--most of him, actually--that's more excited than nervous, in spite of everything. Because this is still _Nate_. And Nate's been cool and smart and easy to talk to ever since they first met, and Monty has trouble feeling anything but giddy joy at the prospect of getting to interact with him in person, and--maybe, possibly, ideally some day very soon--make out with him.

That would be really nice, if it worked out. And even if it doesn't, he's definitely going to have a new friend. Or, well, a new IRL friend, if not a new overall friend. Someone he can force to play board games with him, for sure.

He gets to the coffee shop stupidly early; he was on campus, after all, and home is the opposite direction from Virginia, and if he went home he'd just wear a hole in the carpet waiting to leave. He's looking perfectly presentable and he has problem sets he can work on, so it just makes sense.

He settles into a booth and debates for about twenty seconds before he messages Nate where he is, and Nate responds, _wow, you're really early, you must really like this guy_.

The follow-up message comes before he can respond: _jk I know you just don't want to go home after class_

He bites his lip on a stupid smile: _nope, got it the first time_

Nate just sends a smiley face emoji back, and then he starts complaining about the program he's working on. But all the regular updates seem tinged with a new possibility, with new energy. When Nate says he's headed home, Monty knows he'll be _here_ after, and when he says _on my way to you_ , it's the best feeling in the world.

He doesn't know exactly how far it is from Nate's house to here, but he can't help glancing up every time the bells chime over the door, even when it's clearly way too early for Nate to be here. 

He just--he can't _wait_.

Luckily, it turns out it's only about ten minutes before he arrives, a beanie pulled down over his ears, wearing a black coat and looking around for _Monty_ , all excitement. He's-- _fuck_. He's _Nate_.

When Nate's eyes hit him, Monty raises one hand in greeting, and Nate grins, and then he's _coming over_ , and Monty finds himself standing to meet him, grinning.

"Hey," he says. His voice is deep and a little rough and perfect, and Monty can't stop smiling. "I'm Nate."

"Monty." He swallows. "I know this is a little weird, because we just met, but do you want to go see _Moana_ with me this weekend?"

Nate ducks his head, laughing, and Monty is mesmerized. This is it, he thinks. This is what people wait for. He's never been so sure.

"Yeah, I'd love to."

"Cool," says Monty. "It's a date."


End file.
